DANCES WITH FILMS 2024 REVIEW! Drawing from Scandinavian and Indigenous cultures, filmmaker Phillip Gladkov tells an ancient tale in a unique way in Story of the Sun.
Before the sun existed, man lived in darkness. The world consisted of what they could hear, smell, and touch. One day, man discovered that by banging two rocks together, they could create a form of light known as fire. They quickly learned to summon fire and how to tame it, but they knew that to keep the fire going, they would have to feed it.

“They quickly learned to summon fire and how to tame it…”
Running at seven minutes, Story of the Sun is a stop-motion animation short. What makes it unique is that artist Phillip Gladkov uses birch bark as his medium. All backgrounds and characters are meticulously cut out of bark. Shot like a 2D side-orientation animation, Gladkov’s use of stop motion makes the action feel lively and fluid.
As a story, Story of the Sun shines a light on human ingenuity and human greed as well and is brilliantly told in this special way.
Story of the Sun will screen at the 2024 Dances With Films from June 20 to 30 in Los Angeles.